Door Hanging

Question

I'm in the process of finishing my new house and have a question. I have to hang doors, put on the base and door trim and lay a pre-finished hardwood floor. What should the order be? The sheetrock is up, spackled and painted.

Answer

Usually, we hang the doors next. When I built my house, I chose to hang the doors after the flooring was on. With hardwood we usually cut the jamb off the bottom over the hardwood area. This allows the hardwood to be installed under the jamb (allow 1/2"clearance to jack stud or cripple). I figured if I install the jambs after the hardwood and lino and carpets it would make a neater finish around the jamb than cutting the lino against the jambs and having the lino curl up, which it eventually does. The only negative aspect of this procedure is that if there is a transition between the hall and the room, the door jamb has to be scribed to fit the different elevations, (which is no big deal).

The different flooring joins under the center of the door. Without the jamb in place, you have to be sure that the joint is under the center of the door. So be aware which way the door will swing. The positive aspect is that the hardwood and carpet and lino goes under the jamb giving a nicer finish. The jamb bottom may have to be cut off to allow fitting the jamb on top of hardwood. Check this out first. After the jambs are installed, the transition strips can be installed, tight to the jambs. The casing goes on next, then the base against the casing (door trim).

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Hi, I'm Dave Osborne. With over 50 years experience as a journeyman carpenter, foreman and contractor in heavy construction I enjoyed working with apprentices and sharing the tricks of the trade that others shared with me. Now I get emails from Members all over the world and we include many of my answers in our Free Monthly Newsletters. Some of my answers include drawings and instructions specific to a project, but may also answer your questions. I use correct construction terminology, so you can confidently inform your building supply dealers or contractors exactly what you need.